Voters understand the most crucial issues facing the state are fiscal in nature, said Afendoulis, who is a certified public accountant.

"I really think the message that resonated with people was I am someone that had experience outside of government and a little bit of maturity," Afendoulis said.

With all precincts reporting, Afendoulis won with 36 percent of the vote. Robert Regan and Frank Pfaff placed second and third, with 21 and 20 percent, respectively. John Decker, Tom Norton, Brady Middleton and Brian Downs trailed behind them.

Afendoulis says finance is his passion and hopes others with a similar drive can use it to benefit all citizens.

"I would hope, in the future, this might encourage other people and professionals in other fields to maybe make that sacrifice to become a public servant and use their skills," Afendoulis said.

Afendoulis will face Mary Polonowski in the November general election. Polonowski ran unopposed in the Democratic primary.

Andrew Krietz covers breaking, politics and transportation news for MLive | The Grand Rapids Press. Email him at akrietz@mlive.com or follow him on Twitter.